The defendant is charged [in count __]
with sexual assault in the third degree. The statute defining this offense
reads in pertinent part as follows:

a person is guilty of sexual
assault in the third degree when such person compels another person to submit to
sexual contact by <insert one or both1
of the following:>

use of force
against such other person or a third person, [or]

the threat of the
use of force against such other person or against a third person which
reasonably causes such other person to fear physical injury to himself or
herself or a third person.

For you to find the defendant guilty
of this charge, the state must prove the following elements beyond a reasonable
doubt:

Element 1 - Sexual contactThe first element is that there was sexual
contact between the defendant and the complainant. "Sexual
contact" means any contact by the defendant with the intimate parts of
the complainant or contact of the intimate parts of the defendant with the
complainant. "Intimate
parts" means the genital area or any substance emitted therefrom, groin,
anus or any substance emitted therefrom, inner thighs, buttocks or breasts. To
constitute sexual contact there must be an actual touching. There need not be,
however, direct contact with the unclothed body of the other person or the
defendant. It is enough if the touching of the genital area, groin, anus, inner
thighs, buttocks or breast was through the other person's clothing or the
defendant's clothing.

Element 2 - IntentThe second element is that defendant had the
specific intent to (obtain sexual gratification / degrade or humiliate the complainant).2 A person acts "intentionally"
with respect to a result when (his/her) conscious objective is to cause such
result. <See
Intent: Specific, Instruction 2.3-1.>

Element 3 - Use of force or
threat of use of force

The third
element is that the
defendant compelled the complainant to submit to the
sexual contact by <insert one or both of the following:>3

the use of force against the complainant or
another party, [or]

the threat
of the use of force against the complainant or
another party
which reasonably caused the complainant
to fear physical injury to (himself / herself)
or another party.

"Use
of force" means the use of a dangerous instrument or the use of actual
physical force or violence or superior physical strength against another person. <Include
as appropriate:>

"Dangerous
instrument" means any instrument, article or substance which, under
the circumstances in which it is used or attempted or threatened to be used,
is capable of causing death or serious physical injury. "Serious physical
injury" means physical injury which creates a substantial risk of death, or
which causes serious disfigurement, serious impairment of health or serious
loss or impairment of the function of any bodily organ. It is important to
note that the article need not be inherently dangerous; all that is required
is that the article was capable of causing death or serious physical injury
under the circumstances in which it was used. Any article or substance,
without limitation and even though harmless under normal use, may be found
by you to be a dangerous instrument if, under the circumstances of its use
or threatened or attempted use, it is capable of producing serious physical
injury or death. The state need not prove that in fact death or serious
physical injury resulted, only that the instrument had that potential under
the circumstances.

It is not necessary
for the state to prove that the defendant was armed with or used any weapon for
you to find that the defendant used force. Use of force means that the
defendant must have used actual physical force or violence or superior physical
strength to compel the other person to submit to sexual contact.

You may find a threat of the use of force because
you find that a threat was actually expressed or you may find a threat
implied from the circumstances and from what you find to have been the
defendant's conduct. Any such threat must have been such that it
reasonably caused the complainant to fear physical injury
to (herself/himself/another person). "Physical
injury" means impairment of physical condition or pain. Whether the fear of
physical injury was reasonable is a question of fact for you to determine from
the circumstance that you find existed at the time. <Reference if
appropriate evidence concerning, e.g., any injury inflicted, relative sizes,
place of occurrence, etc.>

In this case, the
state has charged that the sexual contact was compelled by both the use of force
and by the threat of the use of force. These are the two methods by which
compulsion may be demonstrated and proved. That element will be established as
long as each of you finds it proved beyond a reasonable doubt that the contact
was compelled either by the use of force or the threat of the use of force.
Simply put, it is not necessary for the state to prove that the contact was
compelled both by the use of force and by the threat of the use of force, as
long as each one of you is satisfied that it was compelled by force or the
threat of the use of force.4

Conclusion

In summary, the state must prove
beyond a reasonable doubt that 1) sexual contact took place between the
defendant and the complainant,
2) the defendant specifically intended to (obtain sexual gratification / degrade
or humiliate the complainant), and 3) the defendant (used /threatened to use) force.

If you unanimously find that the state
has proved beyond a reasonable doubt each of the elements of the crime of sexual
assault in the third degree, then you shall find the defendant guilty. On the
other hand, if you unanimously find that the state has failed to prove beyond a
reasonable doubt any of the elements, you shall then find the defendant not
guilty.
_______________________________________________________

1
In State v. Chapman, 229 Conn. 529, 536-37 (1994), the court held that it
was improper to instruct regarding the "use of force . . . or the threat of the
use of force," when the defendant was charged only with the "use of force" and
no evidence had been presented regarding the "threat of the use of force."

2The intent element of
this offense is derived from the definition of “sexual
contact” in General Statutes § 53a-65 (3). See State v. Faria,
254 Conn. 613, 636 n.24 (2000).

4
The "use of force" and the "threat of the use of force" are not conceptually
distinct methods of compulsion for purposes of giving a unanimity instruction.
State v. Tucker, 226 Conn. 618, 644-50 (1993).

Commentary

Sentence EnhancerSection
53a-82a (b) provides an enhanced penalty if the victim is under 16 years of
age. The jury must find this fact proved beyond a reasonable doubt. See
Sentence Enhancers, Instruction 2.11-4.